Using Google Earth to Increase Motivation and Student Learning in Social Studies Abstract This study will investigate the impact of using GoogleEarth to increase motivation and student learning in social studies. Specifically, we are interested in using Google Earth as a way to motivate and increase the retention of information of the regional areas of Colonial America. Participants will follow a tour on Google Earth through the Southern Colonies. Throughout the tour they will make stops at each of the four Southern Colonies, within each stop will be various multimedia files. We are interested in evaluating the effect of the use of technology, specifically Google Earth, on the level of motivation and knowledge retention of fifth grade students.
Objective The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of the use of technology, specifically Google Earth, on the level of motivation and knowledge retention of fifth grade students. We specifically want to investigate how the use of Google Earth will impact the learning of colonial regions.
Specific Aims We are interested in exploring how student motivation and learning is impacted by the use of Google Earth. We are interested in exploring how allowing students to create digital representations of their story writing in the form of podcasts, digital videos and online publishing tools might impact their writing ability and motivation to write. It is our hypothesis that children will become more engaged in the writing process when they know they are going to be creating digital representations of their work that will allow for greater expression of creativity and be shared with a wider audience.
Background (prior information or knowledge exists to support the conduct of this study?) Prior research has shown that integrating technology into instruction in meaningful ways can have a positive impact on student motivation and self-esteem (U.S. Department of Education, 1995) as well as on academic achievement (Page, 2002). It has also been determined that allowing students to use various mobile technologies for educational purposes can have a positive influence on their performance and overall outlook on school-related assignments (Swan, van't Hooft, Kratcoski, & Unger, 2005). This is, no doubt, in part do to the fact that these technologies have become ubiquitous in the daily lives of many k-12 students and their familiarity allows them to work confidently and competently with these tools (Prensky, 2001). Specific attention has been paid to the impact of computers on student writing and reading development. In their review of the literature, Goldberg et al discovered that the use of word processors by k-12 students resulted in longer written pieces and higher quality writing (Goldberg, Russell, & Cook, 2003). The use of word processors has also been found to make the writing process more collaborative (Snyder, 1994) as students share their writing with each other and solicit feedback.
The use of word processors by k-12 students is quite prevalent considering the availability of necessary software and teacher familiarity with the technology. However, many classrooms are taking the next logical step and exploring the use of digital storytelling as a medium for student writing. Digital storytelling has been defined as, "a form of short narrative, usually a personal narrative told in the first person, presented as a short movie for display on a television or computer monitor, or projected onto a screen" (Davis, 2005 p. 1). Supporting students in the creation of their own digital stories not only helps them improve their critical thinking skills and writing competency but also helps them develop in the area of media literacy (Ohler, 2005). In addition, allowing students to tell stories can aide in language acquisition and the development of independent reading skills (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 2000). Taking advantage of the free or low cost multimedia production tools available to k-12 students provides young writers with the chance to share their voice creatively with sound effects, music, imagery and even video clips.
Special Expertise of PI Shannon McPheeters has taught fifth grade for five years. She is part of the MACUL MI Champions team, which is a grant team which has a primary focus of integrating technology in the classroom and
Methodology Participants for this study will be made up of 5th grade students enrolled in two fifth grade classrooms. The
For the purpose of this study,
For the purpose of this study, students will first attend a 4-week session in a writing class. As part of this class students will be asked to write a personal narrative story about something that has happened to them or that they have experienced. In writing this story students will work through the traditional writing process of brainstorming, creating a draft, proofreading, revising & editing and writing a final draft. This process will be carried out with pencil and paper and will not include the use of computers.
Students will then be enrolled in a 4-week session on digital storytelling where they will again write a personal narrative. However, in this class the students will use a variety of technologies to work through the process of writing and creating their narratives and their final product will be a digital story rather than a paper-based version of their writing.
During the pre-writing stage students will use a Voicethread (http://voicethread.com/#home) to express their initial thoughts and ideas for their personal narratives. Not only will they be able to listen to their own recorded thoughts but they will also be able to listen to the recorded thoughts of their classmates as a way to stimulate ideas and spark interest in their writing. Students will then work to type up a first draft of their personal narratives using a word processor. They will also be encouraged to use basic concept mapping software to brainstorm other details as well as the overall organization of their narrative.
Once students have completed a draft of their stories they will go through the process of editing and revising with their peers and the instructor as well. When they are finished writing, editing and revising they will record themselves reading their own personal narrative with audio recording/editing software. The students will be encouraged to further edit and add to their stories once they have been recorded. This may include adding sound effects or music where appropriate. Students will then take their recorded soundtracks and import them into a video editing software where they will be able to add visual images to compliment their story.
Statistical Design Comparisons will be made between the finished products of the two classes to see if the use of technology and the creation of digital stories had an impact on student writing. In particular, we will analyze the final drafts and digital stories to see if there is a difference in length and overall quality. Quality will be assessed by having multiple readers use a common rubric to evaluate the stories for grammar, coherence, story structure and vocabulary. A one-way ANOVA will be conducted to analyze the difference in scores between the two sessions and to determine if any difference was significant or not.
Student names will not be attached to the stories or recordings so that readers are unable to identify the individual authors. Individual scores on student stories will be used for research purposes only and will not have an impact on student grades or standing at school.
Students will be given a survey before and after each 4-week session asking them about their interest in writing. Results of this survey will be analyzed to determine if students were anymore motivated to write when using technology than they were in creating their narratives with pencil and paper.
Bransford, J., Brown, L., & Cocking, R. C. (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington, D. C.: National Academy Press.
Davis, A. (2005). Co-authoring identity: Digital storytelling in an urban middle school. Retrieved 11/17, 2008, from http://thenjournal.org/feature/61/
Goldberg, A., Russell, M., & Cook, A. (2003). The effect of computers on student writing: A meta-analysis of studies from 1992 to 2002. The Journal of Technology, Learning, and Assessment, 2(1), 3-51.
Ohler, J. (2005). The world of digital storytelling. Educational Leadership, 63(4), 44-47.
Page, M. (2002). Technology-enriched classrooms: effects of low socioeconomic status. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 34(4), 389-409.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5).
Snyder, L. (1994). Writing with word processors: The computer's influence on the classroom context. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 26(2), 143-162.
Swan, K., van't Hooft, M., Kratcoski, A., & Unger, D. (2005). Uses and effects of mobile computing devices in k-8 classrooms. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 38(1), 99-112.
U.S. Department of Education. (1995). Technology and Education Reform: Technical Research Report-August 1995, Chapter 9. Effects on Students. Retrieved 11/02, 2008, from http://www.ed.gov/pubs/SER/Technology/ch9.html
Abstract
This study will investigate the impact of using GoogleEarth to increase motivation and student learning in social studies. Specifically, we are interested in using Google Earth as a way to motivate and increase the retention of information of the regional areas of Colonial America. Participants will follow a tour on Google Earth through the Southern Colonies. Throughout the tour they will make stops at each of the four Southern Colonies, within each stop will be various multimedia files. We are interested in evaluating the effect of the use of technology, specifically Google Earth, on the level of motivation and knowledge retention of fifth grade students.
Objective
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of the use of technology, specifically Google Earth, on the level of motivation and knowledge retention of fifth grade students. We specifically want to investigate how the use of Google Earth will impact the learning of colonial regions.
Specific Aims
We are interested in exploring how student motivation and learning is impacted by the use of Google Earth.
We are interested in exploring how allowing students to create digital representations of their story writing in the form of podcasts, digital videos and online publishing tools might impact their writing ability and motivation to write. It is our hypothesis that children will become more engaged in the writing process when they know they are going to be creating digital representations of their work that will allow for greater expression of creativity and be shared with a wider audience.
Background (prior information or knowledge exists to support the conduct of this study?)
Prior research has shown that integrating technology into instruction in meaningful ways can have a positive impact on student motivation and self-esteem (U.S. Department of Education, 1995) as well as on academic achievement (Page, 2002). It has also been determined that allowing students to use various mobile technologies for educational purposes can have a positive influence on their performance and overall outlook on school-related assignments (Swan, van't Hooft, Kratcoski, & Unger, 2005). This is, no doubt, in part do to the fact that these technologies have become ubiquitous in the daily lives of many k-12 students and their familiarity allows them to work confidently and competently with these tools (Prensky, 2001). Specific attention has been paid to the impact of computers on student writing and reading development. In their review of the literature, Goldberg et al discovered that the use of word processors by k-12 students resulted in longer written pieces and higher quality writing (Goldberg, Russell, & Cook, 2003). The use of word processors has also been found to make the writing process more collaborative (Snyder, 1994) as students share their writing with each other and solicit feedback.
The use of word processors by k-12 students is quite prevalent considering the availability of necessary software and teacher familiarity with the technology. However, many classrooms are taking the next logical step and exploring the use of digital storytelling as a medium for student writing. Digital storytelling has been defined as, "a form of short narrative, usually a personal narrative told in the first person, presented as a short movie for display on a television or computer monitor, or projected onto a screen" (Davis, 2005 p. 1). Supporting students in the creation of their own digital stories not only helps them improve their critical thinking skills and writing competency but also helps them develop in the area of media literacy (Ohler, 2005). In addition, allowing students to tell stories can aide in language acquisition and the development of independent reading skills (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 2000). Taking advantage of the free or low cost multimedia production tools available to k-12 students provides young writers with the chance to share their voice creatively with sound effects, music, imagery and even video clips.
Special Expertise of PI
Shannon McPheeters has taught fifth grade for five years. She is part of the MACUL MI Champions team, which is a grant team which has a primary focus of integrating technology in the classroom and
Methodology
Participants for this study will be made up of 5th grade students enrolled in two fifth grade classrooms. The
For the purpose of this study,
For the purpose of this study, students will first attend a 4-week session in a writing class. As part of this class students will be asked to write a personal narrative story about something that has happened to them or that they have experienced. In writing this story students will work through the traditional writing process of brainstorming, creating a draft, proofreading, revising & editing and writing a final draft. This process will be carried out with pencil and paper and will not include the use of computers.
Students will then be enrolled in a 4-week session on digital storytelling where they will again write a personal narrative. However, in this class the students will use a variety of technologies to work through the process of writing and creating their narratives and their final product will be a digital story rather than a paper-based version of their writing.
During the pre-writing stage students will use a Voicethread (http://voicethread.com/#home) to express their initial thoughts and ideas for their personal narratives. Not only will they be able to listen to their own recorded thoughts but they will also be able to listen to the recorded thoughts of their classmates as a way to stimulate ideas and spark interest in their writing. Students will then work to type up a first draft of their personal narratives using a word processor. They will also be encouraged to use basic concept mapping software to brainstorm other details as well as the overall organization of their narrative.
Once students have completed a draft of their stories they will go through the process of editing and revising with their peers and the instructor as well. When they are finished writing, editing and revising they will record themselves reading their own personal narrative with audio recording/editing software. The students will be encouraged to further edit and add to their stories once they have been recorded. This may include adding sound effects or music where appropriate. Students will then take their recorded soundtracks and import them into a video editing software where they will be able to add visual images to compliment their story.
Statistical Design
Comparisons will be made between the finished products of the two classes to see if the use of technology and the creation of digital stories had an impact on student writing. In particular, we will analyze the final drafts and digital stories to see if there is a difference in length and overall quality. Quality will be assessed by having multiple readers use a common rubric to evaluate the stories for grammar, coherence, story structure and vocabulary. A one-way ANOVA will be conducted to analyze the difference in scores between the two sessions and to determine if any difference was significant or not.
Student names will not be attached to the stories or recordings so that readers are unable to identify the individual authors. Individual scores on student stories will be used for research purposes only and will not have an impact on student grades or standing at school.
Students will be given a survey before and after each 4-week session asking them about their interest in writing. Results of this survey will be analyzed to determine if students were anymore motivated to write when using technology than they were in creating their narratives with pencil and paper.
Bransford, J., Brown, L., & Cocking, R. C. (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington, D. C.: National Academy Press.
Davis, A. (2005). Co-authoring identity: Digital storytelling in an urban middle school. Retrieved 11/17, 2008, from http://thenjournal.org/feature/61/
Goldberg, A., Russell, M., & Cook, A. (2003). The effect of computers on student writing: A meta-analysis of studies from 1992 to 2002. The Journal of Technology, Learning, and Assessment, 2(1), 3-51.
Ohler, J. (2005). The world of digital storytelling. Educational Leadership, 63(4), 44-47.
Page, M. (2002). Technology-enriched classrooms: effects of low socioeconomic status. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 34(4), 389-409.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5).
Snyder, L. (1994). Writing with word processors: The computer's influence on the classroom context. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 26(2), 143-162.
Swan, K., van't Hooft, M., Kratcoski, A., & Unger, D. (2005). Uses and effects of mobile computing devices in k-8 classrooms. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 38(1), 99-112.
U.S. Department of Education. (1995). Technology and Education Reform: Technical Research Report-August 1995, Chapter 9. Effects on Students. Retrieved 11/02, 2008, from http://www.ed.gov/pubs/SER/Technology/ch9.html